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Each week, the Listener brings you quotes from New Zealand and around the world that best highlight what has happened in the past seven days. Today’s quotes cover Palmerston North’s mayor backing his own city after “boredom” rumours, Labour MP Tamati Coffey’s reversal of his decision to retire from politics to stand for the East Coast electorate after Kiri Allan’s announcement that she wasn’t restanding, and Football Ferns co-captain’s message to girls after being eliminated from the Fifa World Cup – among other events.
“I had to ask myself whether I had more gas in the tank. I actually do have more gas in the tank for this one.” – Labour MP Tamati Coffey replacing Kiritapu Allan as the party’s candidate on the East Coast
Tamati Coffey adopted a familiar metaphor when announcing he would come out of his retirement from politics to replace Kiri Allan in the East Coast electorate. Coffey claims he was shoulder tapped for the role after Allan decided to quit politics following a car crash and arrest a week ago. Back in January this year, then Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern stepped down from her role saying she no longer had that “bit extra in the tank” to do the job justice.
“This is a hot tub. I like my hot tub around 37.8, 38.3 Celsius. That’s what was recorded yesterday [in Florida’s surrounding waters].” – Yale Climate Connections meteorologist Jeff Masters
The surface ocean temperature around the Florida Keys soared on Monday in what could be a global record. Scientists were careful to say there is some uncertainty with the reading, but the buoy at Manatee Bay hit 38.4°C on Tuesday, according to National Weather Service meteorologist George Rizzuto. The night before, that buoy showed an online reading of 37.9°C. The United Nations’ World Meteorological Organisation reported earlier this month that global sea temperatures have reached monthly record highs since May.
“I hope that little girls across New Zealand and the world now will start playing sport and feel like they can achieve whatever they put their mind to and just dream bigger.” – Football Ferns co-captain Ali Riley
The Football Ferns’ FIFA Women’s World Cup journey ended on Sunday night in Dunedin following a 0-0 game against Switzerland. The crowd for the game was near capacity at 25, 947 people, and Riley noted the side felt disappointed but proud of what they had achieved.
“I still get threats every single day; it’s just that I refuse to hide.” – Young New Zealander of the year Shaneel Lal on reactions to their activism as reported by RNZ
Shaneel Lal is a 23-year-old LGBTQ+ activist who helped lead the move to legally ban conversion therapy in New Zealand. Lal has spoken out about surviving conversion therapy growing up in Fiji, as well as the present-day threats they have received. Lal’s new autobiographical book – One of Them – has been vandalised in stores. Earlier this week, Lal posted on Instagram that their home was broken into before receiving a message from a social media account saying they would “come back” for them.
“I don’t know why they have given this to me. Maybe it was the wig? Yeah, it was the wig.” – Sam Neill after winning Most Popular Actor at the Logie Awards
Upon winning the Australian television award for his role as a senior counsel in the legal drama The Twelve, Neill said he hadn’t thought of anything to say and thought he was there to make up numbers. The much-loved Kiwi actor claimed the win for playing barrister Brett Colby who defends a controversial artist on trial for the murder of her teenage niece. This is Neill’s second Logie win, after being awarded Most Outstanding Actor in 2005.
“Can I just say for the record I have had some extremely big nights out in Palmy. Spanish women’s team don’t know what they’re missing.” – National MP Chris Bishop
The now-debunked rumour that the Spanish women’s national football team left their Palmerston North training base early due to boredom was reported initially on ESPN. The Spanish team have since claimed they moved to Wellington to be closer to the stadium in case they ended up at the top of Group C, which would mean they would play in the capital. The Palmerston North City Council defended the city amid the flurry of online comments, saying if the team was willing to give the city a second chance, they could show them “all the cool things you can do here”.
“There’s just a built-in audience that wants to be part of the zeitgeist of the moment. Wherever you go, people are wearing pink. Pink is taking over the world.” – Warner Bros distribution chief Jeff Goldstein
Barbie passed $800 million at the worldwide box office on Monday, with the film projected to break a billion dollars by the following week. Meanwhile, social media has been flooded with what outfits movie-goers are wearing to watch the film, with some including co-ordinated group ensembles. A month before the film’s release, it was also reported that the Barbie set caused an international shortage of pink paint due to the amount required during the construction of the film’s “Barbieland”.
@elenaduquebeauty This made my heart SING 💖! #whatpeoplearewearing #whatpeoplewore #barbiethemovie #barbiemovie #barbieworld #barbieoutfits #barbieoutfitinspo #barbieoutfitdumps #l
♬ Angel (From Barbie The Album) - PinkPantheress
“I don’t do anything in order to cause trouble. It just so happens that what I do naturally causes trouble. I’m proud to be a troublemaker.”– Sinéad O’Connor, who died on July 26
Sinéad O’Connor was an Irish singer and activist who rose to stardom in the 90s, best known for her song Nothing Compares 2 U. She released 10 studio albums in her career and was often referred to as controversial, ending a 1992 appearance on Saturday Night Live by ripping up a photo of Pope John Paul II. Although there were rumours around her cause of death, police have confirmed it was not suspicious.
